Commentary

Trump’s tariffs fit a growing global trend of hardball migration?diplomacy

Such diplomacy works both ways, but richer countries by and large have the upper hand.

The future of China's new information support force

In a bid to dominate the information environment, the PLA created a force to build a resilient network system and drive innovation of cutting-edge tech.

Let's talk about the next US-Israel military-assistance agreement

I helped negotiate the current one. It's high time to get started on its successor.

It's time for a new Key West agreement

Airpower, air defense, Marines’ role—all need revisiting, three-quarters of a century after the seminal roles-and-missions pact.

Trump wants a faster security clearance process, too

But can he avoid politicizing it? On Day One, he stripped clearances from people he doesn't like and created a temporary end-run for people he does.

As the US and China race to the Moon, loopholes in space law could allow?conflict

The prospect of “space water wars” is nearer, timewise, than the prospect of providing clean drinking water to everyone in the developing world.

Lone-wolf attacks have become a hallmark of post-caliphate ISIS

The group's propaganda inspired the New Orleans attack, which proceeded without direct operational support.

2024 in review: Commentary

Defense One contributors gathered lessons from around the globe and looked ahead to the new administration.

In defense of the military’s unfunded priority lists

The service branches’ “wish lists” are a key part of Congress’ oversight process.

Assad’s fall lays the ground for wider peace—if the US can seize the moment

A key will be reshaping the role of the Kurdish militants in Syria.

The Army is too top-heavy

Surplus generals, swollen staffs, and excess headquarters drain headcount and resources from warfighting units.

Will Assad’s defeat be Putin’s Waterloo?

The narrative of Russia's ascendancy in 2024 is beginning to look like more fiction than fact.

Can Syria's triumphant rebel coalition unite the country?

And what should the U.S. do about this potentially "catastrophic success"?

Want ‘government efficiency'? Help change agencies from within

DOGE leaders talk a lot about slashing headcount. They should foster better decision-making instead.

How a director of national intelligence helps a president stay on top of threats from around the?world

A former chairman of the National Intelligence Council offers an explainer.

What game theory says about a MAGA military

A thought experiment based on Trump’s desire for officers who obey without question.

How did Hayat Tahrir al-Sham come to prominence in Syria’s civil?war?

The Islamist group, which spearheaded of the surprise rebel advance into Aleppo, is an offshoot of al-Qaida in Syria.